Leader
by TezrianFlux
Summary: He was concerned for the blue-clad warrior, for he was a chivalrous and respected man.
1. Fire

Disclaimer: I don't own Dissidia: Final Fantasy. If I did, I would be filthy rich and laughing my face off. :D

Leader

By: TezrianFlux

They were weary, her warriors. Day after day they fought their crystalline reflections as they searched for their desired crystals. Night had started to fall and the ten warriors decided to settle down and set camp in the large gap in the center of the dense forest they found themselves in. Tents were up, a fire cackling from the wood that it was fed, and the warriors situated themselves around it. The youngest of them, Luneth, sat on the ground next to Terra who was gently rubbing her hands together and held them to the flaring warmth of the fire. The boy had taken his helmet off and laid it off to his left side, letting his spiked bangs go rampant. The young knight fixated his eyes on the scarlet and ember colored flames that danced on the burning bark of branches they gathered earlier. The flames' light reflected softly off his vermillion armor, making him glow gently. What the flames' light brought out the most were his beautiful, jade eyes. His eyes traveled to observe his comrades. Zidane and Bartz sat a little ways off and were silently laughing and snickering to themselves while shooting glances at Squall. Squall sat on the ground with his back against the tree with his gunblade lying in his lap. He was cleaning his blade and tried to ignore the two pranksters. Cloud, their blond, quiet and ethereal swordsman sat off to his side, cleaning his incredibly long sword as well. The two lone wolves ignored them and settled back into their own thoughts. Tidus, the ever cheerful and energized blitzball player chatted excitedly to the passionate Firion and the kind-hearted Cecil, who smiled and silently chuckled and the young man's antics. All of the warriors were together, except for one. Luneth looked around him again and still could not find their leader. It was as though the warrior himself vanished into thin air, leaving no trace of his chivalrous persona.

"Um, Terra?"

"Hm?" The young Esperkin turned her soft violet eyes to him, curiousness swelling in the dark pools.

"Have you seen Light?" He tilted his head to the side, giving off the sense of innocence and concern. It was true he was concerned to the man, for he held great respect for the older knight and felt that it was his duty to make sure those around him were alright. Terra's pastel lips formed a small smile as she looked at the boy before her.

"I'm not sure," her smile widened when she saw his shoulders sag, "but I did see him go that way into the woods." She twisted her body and pointed to the brushes of trees behind them. Luneth nodded to her and got up from the log, quietly and discretely he walked into the woods.

Luneth didn't know how long he had been walking, but one thing's for sure: he was lost.


	2. Moon

Chapter 2: Moon

Luneth didn't know how long he had been walking, but one thing's for sure: he was lost. He had passed many kinds of trees, trees such as the thorned Honey Locust, the fiery red Eastern Redbud and Scarlet Oak, the purple clustered Mountain Laurel, the bubbly Crape myrtle, the spread out Black Cherry, and the dark Cypress all seemed serene and deathly calm around him. The full moon reigned the star-embraced sky above him and its light covered all, making the blossoms and leaves of the trees glow like the very crystals they searched for, their colors reflecting off all surfaces. A soft breeze gently brushed by like the soft breathing of an infant, and the lengthy ponytail that traveled to his knees rose swiftly with the soft breeze as though it was a lover performing the waltz. Soon the young man saw an opening up ahead of him, the tunnel of trees were soon coming to an end. When he reached the end he came upon a small clearing that led to the top of a small cliff, and there he saw their fearless leader, the Warrior of Light.

The blue-clad warrior stood at the cliff's edge underneath a tree that bore the white and pink blossoms of the Flowering Dogwood and the dark, plum berries of the Hercules-Club. Bits of pedals flew to the sky, an offering to the Goddess Cosmos. The red-clad knight quietly made his way to their leader, careful as to not disturb the tranquility of peace that had been given as a blessing. He walked until he stood a few feet away from the man, and when he tried to speak the words died in his throat. Why had he come looking for silver haired knight? He didn't know why, or had he known and forgot his reason. He lowered his head and stared at his feet, feeling foolish for not even knowing why he sought the older man.

"Is there something wrong?"

Jade eyes widened and he slowly raised his head to look at the warrior. The older knight had slightly turned his head so that you only saw the side of his face, his blue-grey eyes focusing solely on Luneth. The boy could lose himself in those eyes, to be under the control of those luminescent pools forever. When he noticed that he was staring he quickly averted his eyes to the side, embarrassed that he had made a fool of himself before the very man he respected the most. "N-nothing," he replied gently. Light's usually stoic face momentarily broke when he raised an eyebrow, but as quickly as his expression changed it once again became expressionless. He turned his body around until he faced the small knight and walked until he was right in front of him. Luneth was the smallest of the warriors, having only been tall enough to reach Light's stomach. Before Luneth could raise his head to look into Light's face, the said knight got down on one knee and rested his arm on his bended knee. They both were eye to eye, and Light raised his other arm to lay his hand on an armor covered shoulder.

"Never lose hope," he said, his voice unwavering. "No matter where we are or what happens to us, the light will always guide us." The young man digested these words and understood that he was right. The light would always be with them even if they were to perish within the darkness. He nodded his head in understanding and got up from the ground and turned towards the way that Luneth had come. "Shall we return?"

"Um-hm." Light started walking with Luneth trailing behind him, keeping his distance so he wouldn't invade the others space. Then at that moment he remembered a question he once asked himself: What is the Warrior of Light like? He smiled and then thought of a perfect reason as to why. Light was like the moon. Even in the darkest of skies the moon always shone brightly and lit the way. He was the light that guided them through the grueling darkness that always seemed to leave them with no hope, but when Light fought, his light shined so bright that it was blinding. His light was warm and comforting like a mother's embrace and it that light that had made them ignore their pain and keep fighting.

A/N: Yaaaaaaaayyy! Chapter two is done! :D I hope I didn't make it sound weird in any way. I started to think about trees and then I was like 'woah, I want to put down all kinds of trees!' and that's why there's certain types of trees mentioned in this chapter. I'll try to not get too carried away! I'm planning the next chapter as we speak and I'll update when I can.


	3. Tease

Chapter 3: Tease

The two knights made it back to camp with no problems, basking in the silence that had been with them before the melodious voices of their companions flowed around them. Everyone was still in the same spot as when Luneth had left, although Terra had stood up and put more wood into the flaring fire they had set up. But there were two people missing, and those two people were none other than the pranksters Zidane and Bartz. He was about to ask where the two had gone when he had felt two arms lie on both his shoulders. He looked side to side and signed when he noticed that it was only the said warriors. Zidane was on his right side while Bartz stood to his left, both gazing down at him with smiles on their faces but with the obvious mischievous glint in their eyes. An uneasy feeling nested itself when he saw that glint, knowing full well that these two have come to make him their next victim with their teasing.

"So! Where have you been hiding your pretty self, Luneth?" Zidane asked joyfully with a wide grin, knowing that it annoyed the young knight when people referred to his boyish yet feminine looks. Zidane's tail then came around him and started wriggling under his chin in a playful way. Oh, how Luneth would have loved to yank that tail and make Zidane suffer. Bartz laughed heartily and ruffled the knight's hair in a brotherly gesture.

"Aw, don't be like that Zidane! He was just with Light." This only made Zidane smirk, fangs glistening in the light made from the fire.

"Hm? He was just _**with**_ Light? Luneth, I thought you were too young for such things!" When what the Genome had said sunk in, his cheeks were dusted with pink and his eyes were wide.

"What?"

"Awww, he's blushing!3" Bartz said, chuckles escaping his lips.

"Our little boy's all grown up!" Zidane pretended to sniffle before snickering. Luneth's baby pink blush blossomed into a scarlet red.

"How can you think that? We weren't doing anything!" He was starting to panic; he didn't want these two to get the wrong idea about him and their leader. He always followed after the man, his curiosity turning into respect as he spent more time around him. "I'm just concerned for him, that's all!"

"Um-hm, keep telling yourself that," they said to him. They both ruffled his hair and walked away to go bother Squall before they had to turn in for the night. Luneth huffed, and turned walked over to Terra who yawned. Tonight was going to be a long one.


	4. Watch

Chapter 4: Watch

Luneth couldn't sleep, not with his thoughts racing. He slowly sat up s o he wouldn't awaken his sleeping comrades. He stood quietly and gently stepped over a sleeping Terra and left the confines of the tent. The moon lit up the clearing they settled in and looked around. He knew that Light would be keeping watch and thought that perhaps he could join him, seeing as how he couldn't sleep. Then through a patch of trees he saw the warrior sitting on the ground with his body leaning against a large rock, gazing up at the sky. The boy quietly made his way over to him and stopped a few feet away, so he wouldn't alert the warrior. They didn't speak, letting the tranquil silence pull over them like a blanket.

"Is there something wrong?" He turned his head slightly and acknowledged Luneth's presence. The boy averted his eyes shyly and then looked back into bluish orbs.

"I was wondering," he started, "if I could stand watch with you?" He hoped the man would agree, because for some reason he wanted to be next to him. Perhaps it was because he held great respect for him?

"If that is what you wish," the blue knight said then turned his gaze back to that of the moon. Luneth walked over and sat next to the man and he too gazed at the moon. A soft breeze came and brushed the long tresses of hair they had, making the night soothing to the ever fighting warriors.

The Warrior of Light continued to stare at the sky, watching the dark sky become painted with the early rays of the new day. He did not know how long they had been out here, yet that hadn't seemed to matter. He felt something thump gently against his right side, and he looked down to see Luneth fast asleep and leaning against him. A feeling of nostalgia swirled inside Light, be he did not know why. It was true he couldn't remember anything from his life, especially his name. He had the feeling that he had this happen to him before, but couldn't recall. Slowly he raised his left arm and was about to reach forward when his hand stopped. Images popped into his head. A silver haired child laid against a larger body just like Luneth was, and he could see a hand gently caress the child's head in a loving manner. As quickly as the images had come they went. He grew confused. Perhaps they were memories? He knew not, yet a part of him wanted to know. He was pulled from his thoughts when he felt the small body move slightly before lying still again, and he moved his hand to his head. He gently ruffled the bronze-blond spikes, and thought to himself that perhaps having a child following him was a good thing after all.


	5. Dreams

Chapter 5: Dream

Dreams. Dreams were always so confusing to Luneth. He would dream of one thing and then dream of something else. Yet this dream was different, in fact, it was more like a nightmare. He was standing in the middle of 'Edge of Madness', the lone throne lying upon altered stairs that lay in the middle of a barren waste land. He couldn't move, only breath in the dense air of this forsaken place. The air burned, it hurt to breathe, and he felt as though someone was crushing his chest. Then he finally saw him, the God of Discord Chaos. He sat upon his throne leaning over one side as to lie is head on the hand of his bent arm. He looked indifferent and disinterested to all that was around him. The said god looked down upon Luneth with blazing red eyes, making the young knight feel smaller than he already was.

"Tell me, human…." His voice boomed, "why do you fight?" The god's tail came around and wrapped around the young man's body, restricting any movement had he made any. Soon footsteps echoed around them, more than one person coming towards them. Then he saw them, the Warriors of Chaos. All of them had come and stood along the edges of the alter like throne, forming a circle around them. Panic bloomed within the red-clad warrior, for he stood in the middle of their enemies, and he stood before the chaotic god himself. What is there not to fear? He was alone with them all, unable to move or make a sound. A pain in his head came, a pain that throbbed with each passing second. The more he looked into the god's eyes did he feel more pain.

Footsteps echoed again, telling of another who approached them. The being that belonged to the steps walked until they were right behind the poor child. He felt hands upon his shoulders, and for that moment he felt something familiar. A soothing emotion went through his body, cooling it down from the intense heat that had invaded long before. He knew this feeling, but who was it? He name was on the tip of his tongue, but he just couldn't remember. He felt the person lean over him and when he looked up it seemed as though time itself had stopped within that moment. He was looking up into the face of their leader, the face of the Warrior of Light. The knight glowed lightly from the light radiating from the orbs of fire that fell from the sky. Light lifted his hands to gently caress Luneth's face, his face as unreadable as it always is, and always will be.

"In due time," he started, "all will be corrected and all will be saved." Jade clashed against bluish-gray. What did he mean by 'all will be corrected'? What was going to happen? Then his hands fell from the boy's face and he stood up straight. He walked around him until he was face to face with Chaos. "We must face, true darkness." Then, within those moments, all Luneth saw was red. One of Chaos's clawed hands went through the Warrior of Light's body, blood gushing and dripping from the wound like honey. He wanted to scream but couldn't, all he could do was watch.

All of a sudden Luneth was at the top of the stairs instead of right in front like Light and noticed that he no longer felt constricted. He then tried to move and found that he could and tried to run to the bleeding warrior. Chaos's wings flapped once and the winds sent Luneth flying away from his comrade, he fell into the void of darkness that surrounded them instead of hitting the stairs that did no longer exist. He fell and fell, shock numbing the nerves of his body. He couldn't do anything, he couldn't save Light, and he could neither save himself. The sound of glass breaking filled his ears and he looked around. Cracks decorated the darkness that surrounded him before the darkness itself seemed to break, Light poured through the cracks and soon burst forth, broke through the darkness, and soon Luneth found himself closing his eyes.

Luneth's eyes shot open, the harsh thumping of his heart were pulsing through his body, and the sound of his hearth pulsating being the only thing he heard. He realized that he was alone and Light was not with him. He got up quickly and looked around frantically for their leader.

'Please,' he pleaded inside his mind,' don't let it be true!' The red knight started running back towards camp, panic filling him. Soon he arrived at the camp, out of breath, and looking around quickly. Then the warrior he had looked for appeared in his vision. Light was speaking with Firion and he looked fine. Relief then filled Luneth, soon coming to a realization that all he had witnessed had really been nothing but a dark dream.


	6. Like You

Disclaimer: Don't own Dissidia Final Fantasy :D

Like You

Luneth always strived to be like the other warriors of Cosmos. He wanted to be strong like them and to face Cloud of Darkness and finish the war. But the others only saw him as a child. Some would pity him, others would say they didn't want to babysit, and others would simply treat him like a child. He's as much as a warrior as they are, isn't he? Cosmos summoned him too so he should be good enough. When they babied him he felt so angry and lost that he would go off by himself and practice fighting so he could better himself. The only ones who didn't treat him like a child were Kain and Wol. He looked up to the Warrior of Light so much; the older knight always walked forward, never wavering or cowering.

Luneth would try hard to follow that example, no matter what. So even when he was laying on the ground with various cuts on his arms and legs and with a bloody nose he didn't give up. The manikins he was facing were stronger than usual and they had the advantage. He tried to lift his sword to prevent the Garland copy above him from crushing him with his shape-shifting sword and found that he couldn't. He saw the large sword come closer until and smaller and slim sword came out and blocked it. The Warrior of Light pushed the copy back and stood before the young knight with his back turned to him.

"Are you alright?" The older knight asked, his sword posed and ready for battle. Luneth looked upon the warrior with wonder before nodding.

"Y-yes…"

"Good," Wol replied before plunging into battle. Luneth truly wanted to be like the Warrior of Light.


End file.
